Marionette
by Queen-Of-DollZ
Summary: "If you want it so badly, what's stopping you? Oh yes, morality. Morality is perspective, my dear. After all," she dangled the crystal in Alya's face as she smiled cryptically, "what's a little morality for the sake of friends?"
1. Chapter 1

The Loss

She could hear the crumbling of support beams and inner concrete. The building was being evacuated quickly, but not fast enough. Civilians ran for the doors as both she and Chat struggled to hold the main support beam upright, trying to buy more time for the people and first responders to get out. She could feel Tikki in the back of her subconscious grow weaker by the minute. She couldn't speak to her telepathically, but she prayed to whatever deity that heard her that her thoughts got to the red and black kwami.

Stay strong.

Just a bit longer.

She felt the fear, though. She felt it in her bones and mind and muscles. As more people got out, she felt the string attached to her yo-yo begin to strain as the beam fought against them and for gravity. Chat grunt, pulling harder as he struggled to make one of his feet step back again. She looked over at him, the fear evident in his eyes though they were narrowed in determination. She could see his own muscles straining, sweat dampening the blonde hair on his head and dripping into his leather suit. He looked over at her and saw the same thing.

"CHAT NOIR! LADYBUG!" One of the firefighters whom had been on the scene when the akuma they had been fighting had attacked shouted to them. "Come on, we gotta go! The building's gonna go down any minute!" Ladybug shook her head frantically. If even one of them made a move to leave their post, the building would collapse instantly. She hadn't even had time to do use her cleansing powers before it started.

"We can't," she shouted, "the building will crush us if we move! Get out of here!" The firefighter looked conflicted. One the one hand, he couldn't leave them to die. One the other hand, Ladybug was right. All that standing between them and a couple dozen deaths were two super powered teenagers. Chat grunted.

"Just go!" That command snapped the man out of it and he rushed from the building, hoping the cranes and bulldozers that had been ordered were outside. Now all they heard and saw were more crumbling pieces of steel and concrete as more people got out. Chat looked at her, seeing her eyes begin to fill with tears of dread and that's how he knew.

This was it.

He looked away and laughed humorlessly, "not exactly the way I expected this to end." She smiled.

"Oh? I thought you wanted to bring the house down." He smiled back at her, tears welling in his own eyes.

"Not literally...well, if this is it...then...it's been an honor, my lady." Two whole sentences and not one pun. Ladybug sighed. She really was going to die. They stayed quiet, still straining against their fate.

"Marinette..."

"What?"

"That's my name...Marinette." She slowly let one hand go and swiped at her face, dissolving her mask and letting Chat see her face for the first time. Or so she thought. Chat's eyes widened as he took in the face of his sweet classmate. The girl who sat behind him, who could barely keep a five minute conversation with him, who had proven that she could beat him at any game (be it Connect Four or Dance Dance Revolution) was also the girl he was undeniably in love with. Tears ran down her cheeks, "sorry if I'm not all that you thought I was." Chat shuffled closer, risking speeding up their deaths just to be close. Once Ladybu-Marinette put her hand back to stabilize the yo-yo, he took his clawed hand off the string that they had both been holding for over an hour and removed his mask. Marinette's eyes widened as she took in his face.

"Adrien Agreste...but I think we already know each other."

"...Adrien..." Her voice was hoarse and thick with tears. "I'm so sorry...maybe if I had been faster, I-"

"Hey...this is the best case scenario, Bugaboo...your powers deal with good luck...there was no getting out of this." He leaned over and rested his forehead with hers. "I'm just glad the girl I love is also the other girl I've been getting a crush on for the last six months." She smiled sadly.

"...Really?" He nodded solemnly, "then I'm glad the partner I can always trust to have my back and tell me bad jokes is the guy I've been in love with for a year." He laughed at that. A loud crack snapped through the air and they both stiffened up. It was like a toll from a gong, letting them know that their time was going to be up.

"...Can I kiss you...?" His eyes were now filled with tears. All this time...she had been so close and now, now that he knew that she did love him, they weren't going to be able to live happily ever after.

Marinette nodded and leaned forward as he did. Adrien met her lips with his, savoring the softness and sweet taste as the yo-yo snapped and the building fell around them.

 **"You either die a hero, or you live long enough to see yourself become the villian."**

 **Harvey Dent, The Dark Knight**

* * *

I am officially Ladybug Trash. (sighes and puts on Cone of Shame) Anyway, this story has been bugging me for some time now and since I've come to run into a Writer's Block with Night Speed, I decided to write it. That's the secret, when you have Writer's Block, write a short story.

I AM WORKING ON NIGHT SPEED'S NEXT CHAPTER, **CALM YOUR INSANE TITS**.

This will be a multi chapter story, but I don't plan on making it longer then...let's say 10 chapters (but who knows?) There will be tears, violence, and possibly a chance of OTHER shows being referenced to (whoever guesses what shows those are will get a one-shot request written for them.)


	2. Chapter 2

CHAPTER I

To Know But Not Understand is the Reason Why You're Not I

 _One Year Later_

It had been one full year since the tragic incident that took the lives of over two dozen Parisian citizens, including the beloved hero due, Ladybug and Chat Noir. The shock and horror of that specific akuma attack had been evident for months on end.

Endless television tributes.

Endless articles.

Cards.

Flowers.

Tears.

Well meaning words.

All of it was stifling. Trying to cope with the pain of losing her two idols, no...her best friends was like trying to swallow cotton covered in glue. Horrible and disgusting. Alya had sat through tribute after tribute, vigil after vigil, and had been bombarded alongside Marinette's family and Adrien's father by reporters and fans just to somehow make it to this day.

The Mayor made his way up the podium, a somber but peaceful look on his face as he stood in front of the opening of a new park. Reporters and bloggers occupied every inch of the grass in front of the entrance with phones, microphones, and video cameras all trained on him. Alya did not need to blog this. She had not updated her blog in a year, not since she lost them both. Nino farther back from her, but she could feel his glances each time he deemed it necessary to take his eyes off the stand. They had not been getting along for the last six months, both feeling guilty about not figuring out their respective best friends' identities and, naively, taking their frustrations out on each other. Alya didn't want her relationship to suffer anymore, but it seemed that no matter how many times she tries to approach him to discuss how they felt about what they knew, Nino found some way to avoid the conversation or started another fight.

God, things were so much easier before this.

"People of Paris, I stand before you today a somber man. Because this is a sad, tragic day that reminds of that tragedy that besot us last year. On this day, last year, we lost twenty four people to the horrendous attack perpetrated by that villain, Hawkmoth...including two citizens whom had given their time and, ultimately, their lives to protect this fair city and those within it. And so, it is in memory of those lives lost and of the bravery of Ladybug and Chat Noir, that we open this park." With an overly extravagant flourish, the red velvet ribbon was cut and the gates swung open.

The park was gorgeous, with flawlessly cut vibrant green grass and immaculately trimmed bushes. A large circular bush encompassed a tall, fifteen foot statue depicting Ladybug and Chat Noir in all their glory, in a way that was rarely used to show them. Usually, when they were shown, it was always some sort of action shot. And many had been submitted when it was revealed that a statue would be sculpted in their honor.

The winner had been Nathanael, however, for his near flawless submission of a Ladybug and Chat Noir. He had drawn them in a way rarely seen, with Ladybug sitting down and leaning back. She was smiling down at Chat Noir, who had laid his head on her lap and was smiling lovingly at her. He had his clawed hand on her cheek, entwined in her hair.

Alya both loved it and hated it.

The statue was a gorgeous, shining example of their devotion to each other, both in superhero form and in civilian form. It was also a blaring reminder of that horrible day, of when they were finally able to dig through the rubble and debris and find the two heroes who never reemerged again. They had been found close together, as if they had kissed...

 _Dammit, Mari..._ Alya thought angrily as tears welled up in her eyes. _You finally got your kiss and then..._ People came into the park, walking it in awe as they mumbled about their favorite heroes and what they remembered of them, as well as any and all victims whom had fallen to Hawkmoth's vicious attack. Alya stayed seated, staring at the statue as if she was trying to will it to move...to bring back her two friends and give her back her life. She felt the air next to her change and sighed. "Not now, Nino..."

"Alya...we need to talk."

"...We talked enough last night."

"We need to talk more, then." He rubbed the bridge of his nose, pushing his glasses back. "Look, this past year...it hasn't...been great."

"That's an understatement."

"I know, okay, I know! Adrien was my best friend!" And here it goes. Alya let him rant on and on about how he knew how it felt because he felt it too, how she was being selfish, how he wanted them back too. He finally calmed back down and groaned, "Alya...I can't do this anymore..." He took her hand, but she didn't look at him. "I love you...I do...but...I need to move on...I loved Adrien and Mari too, God...those two were my best friends...I loved them like a brother...but I need to move on...Adrien and Mari would not want us to mourn for the rest of our lives...And...you need more time, then okay...but I need to move on..." He clasped her hand, "but I do love you, okay...if...maybe in the future...when we both feel like we can do this..."

"...Just go, Nino..." He looked at his now ex-girlfriend as she continued to stare despondently at the statue before groaning.

"You can always call...okay...?" She didn't notice when he left. She didn't notice when the sky began to become dark and people began to go home. She didn't notice when her phone rang with her mother's ringtone and her father's text messages. She did, however, notice one call. Her phone didn't ring any louder or differently. But something instinctual made her hand reach and pick up her phone.

 _Unavailable?_ Alya stared at her screen in confusion. She never blocked anyone, not even Chloe. She wanted to keep herself informed of every call and text at every time. Alya answered and wasn't even able to speak before the caller began to talk.

"Quite the dreary break up there, Darling. It was so dull, I don't know how you stood it. I would have _died_ of sheer boredom. I've never seen a boy so flustered over something so dramatic as the end of a young relationship. But you handled it with such uninterested splendor, that I guess I can't complain to much." She didn't recognize the woman's voice and it didn't sound like she was nearby. She had a voice that reminded Alya of Pride and Prejudice's Jane Bennett. But higher, much more whimsical. Alya glanced around, no one else was in the park on their phones.

"Who is this?"

"Oh, don't bother, Alya. You won't see me until I've decided it's convenient for you to see me. There's a time and a place for convenience, and this is not the time but it is the place. So wait patiently, speak promptly when I allow it, and then it will be the time. Understood?"

"I...uh...?"

"Of course you don't, Dear. That's why I am me and you are Alya. I am the one who is to understand the confusing, befuddle the certain, make possible the impossible, make logic of the illogical, and resew the thread of reality as I see fit. And you, Dear Alya? Well...I'll explain your role in just a moment."

"Wait, my what?"

"Your role, Darling. Keep up, please, we have no time to dally..."

"Okay, who are you and what game are you playing at?"

"I play at many games, Dearie, you'll have to be more specific than that."

"Seriously, if this is a prank, it's not funny."

"Ahhh, a prank. Well, Alya, you'll be glad to know that this is no prank. But, if you need help believing me thus far, then alright. In two seconds, a man is going to come over to you. He'll be dressed in a plain white shirt with white wash designer Agreste brand jeans. He'll walk up to you and sit beside you." A man matching that description sat beside Alya. "He has brown hair, blue eyes, and he is currently single but hoping to not be. A beautiful young lady such as yourself is definitely his type, I suggest _not_ glancing at him. You see, once you do, he'll take that as an invitation to flirt with you and, unfortunately, he is the kind of man to not take rejection very well." Alya stiffened as she began to fight the urge to look at this man. "Good work so far. Now, stand up and begin walking towards the park entrance, north of the statue." Alya automatically stood and grabbed her bag, phone still clutched to her ear, and she began to walk in the direction. She cast a quick glance to the guy who was now staring at her devilishly. "Oh, you just had to look back, didn't you? Well, that's a problem."

"What? Why?"

"Because, Darling, that man is also of the insidious mindset that if a woman glances at him, she is interested in him. He's already had several sexual assault and battery charged against him." Alya felt her throat constrict, "you just made yourself his next target."

"Oh God..."

"Not to worry, Dearie. I can fix this easily. In a moment, you will come to the sidewalk, take a left at the corner towards the bank." Alya hastened her walk and took the left, merging with the crowd. Thinking she had lost him, Alya visibly relaxed. "Alya, don't dawdle. He's still following you. Make a right at the pharmacy." She yelped and hurried, making a right when needed. People passed by, their voices and steps merging into a chaotic symphony of sounds. "Lovely, increase your pace please...Perfect." She finally came to a crosswalk. "You'll cross here in a second." The light changed and she got ready, "not yet." It changed. "A moment more..." It was now close to changing back, "now, quickly." Alya dashed across the street and, in a matter of seconds, heard a few people shout as wheels screeched and a scream echoed through the air. The woman was silent on the phone as Alya turned slowly to see the man fly through the air and crash into the asphalt, skidding to a stop as his body bled through his clothes. " _Now_ , you are safe."

"What... You... Ran him over?" The woman giggled.

"Oh, Alya, if I had killed him, we wouldn't be having this conversation. No, Dear, I simply put things in place so that he was accidentally run over by a truck. No one is at fault. The truck driver was going the speed limit and did try to stop, but the man was just so awfully distracted that he didn't realize the truck was coming... Or that the crosswalk sign was in its 'stop' mode. Not one of my best work, true, but I had to work with what I had." The woman laughed, "but now that your little demonstration ofa few of my skills is done, we should move on. See that cafe over there? La Rue Cafe," Alya stiffly turned and saw it. It had recently opened and was incredibly popular for it's soft atmosphere and classic jazz music. "Go in there, you'll see me then." The phone went dead and she stared at it for a long time.

Who was this woman?

She somehow orchestrated Alya to get all the way over here.

Was this some kind of prank?

But if it was, then how did she kill that man? How did she know that truck was coming down the road, how did she know he'd follow Alya across the street... Hell, how did she know he'd even be there, let alone interested in her?

She had told her that he had been the culprit of sexual assault and battery. Was she one of the victims? But when Alya thought about it, she didn't sound like she was. There was no hint of fear or anger, she talked about him like she had just read a short article about him. Like he was nothing and laughed when Alya said she had killed him.

Curiosity had killed the cat, but Alya was just too curious to care. She went into the cafe and was thrown into a scent of coffees, teas, and pastries. Soft jazz hummed around her as hipsters and artists all lazed around, sipping lattes and munching on croissants. She looked around slowly when, "over here, Dear!" She whipped her head around to see a pretty woman sitting at a booth.

She had bright pink bubblegum hair that fell down to the small of her back and wore a knee length purple skirt with crinoline stuffed in and pink ruffles along the edges. Her blouse was white and she wore a purple vest. She also wore purple and pink stockings with white pumps. She sat in front of chess board with a big grin on her face. Alya walked over and sat down awkwardly. "Good, you're all finished with your internal doubt and suspicion early. I must say, I'm impressed. It usually takes at least fifteen minutes."

"Okay... Seriously...who are you?" The woman smiled.

"Straight to the point, I admire that. Though, it is fun to sometimes go away from the point or a bit above or below the point. But, back to the point, my name is Catherine. Catherine Cheshire-Kirkland, at your service. And you are Alya Cesaire." Alya nodded suspiciously. "Pleasure to officially meet you, Alya."

"Like wise, I guess."

"Ahh, uncertainty. The art of never being too certain to be wrong, but just enough certain to be almost right. I know it well."

"I no longer have an idea of what you are saying."

"Thankfully, I do and, in this relationship, that's all that matters. Now, you have questions, Dear. Let's see if they're good enough to answer." Alya thought hard about what to say next. So far, everything Catherine had said (and it wasn't much, save for instructions on how to find her) was complicated.

 _I'd better pay attention or she'll run me around,_ Alya concluded. "Who are you?"

"I believe that I answered that question,"

"No, _who_ are you? You somehow got my number, made a guy get hit by a truck, and had me walk several blocks to get to you." Alya leaned closer, staring into Catherine's eyes... They were violet? "Somehow, you knew where I was, when he would get there, that he would follow me if I looked and that I did look, and you knew what crosswalk I would be at and when that truck would drive by. You also knew that he'd be too distracted by following me to realize that he'd walked right into it. No normal person could do that, not without being there. So, who are you?"

Catherine grinned like a girl who was just told a good joke, "Ahh, the investigative reporter in you is certainly showing. Impressive. Alright, Alya, I can answer that question. It's not a question of _who_ am I, but of _what_ am I. And I, Alya, am what one would call a...monster. More specifically, a Cheshirus." Catherine sipped from the tea cup that Alya hadn't even noticed. "You see, Dear, what I am about to tell you is speculated upon by those most consider... Crazy, weird, gullible, etc. Big Foot? The Loch ness Monster? El chupacabra? You've heard of those, yes?"

"Yeah, they're not real." A resounding laugh from Catherine made Alya jump in surprise. She grinned at her.

"I love it when humans doubt things that are literally right in front of them, it's so funny!" Catherine sighed, "no, pumpkin, they are. Very real in fact. I've seen the Lochness Monster and several other similar ones in different lakes several times now. But, back to the point, monsters exist and we are everywhere."

"Okay, now I know you're playing with me. This isn't funny."

"Really? Even after I made sure to kill a possible rapist despite being far from the scene? In a way that you said, and I quote, _no normal person could do that, not without being there._ " Alya stared in shock. Catherine had just copied her voice perfectly. "I have a question now. Have you ever heard of Alice in Wonderland?" With this, Catherine slid a copy of the beloved tale to Alya from across the table, pristine like she had just bought it.

"Yeah, I have. Little girl dreams about some crazy place where everything is backwards."

"That's...err... One way of putting it, I suppose. Well, the author decided to take some liberties with the story as opposed to what truly happened. After all, in that day and age, a whimsical story of a little girl was more likely to sell than the real story."

"The... Real story?" Catherine nodded.

"Once upon a time, a man was walking one evening when he spotted a strange sight... At least, strange for that time. A beautiful young woman dressed in a vest and blouse with white pantaloons-those are pants, by the way-with various pocket watches on her person and multiple strange markings that resembled ticking clocks. So enamoured was he, that he followed her into a strange hole into the ground- accidentally - and found himself in a strange land that neither here nor there and logic has no hold."

"What...?"

"Darling, that's what you humans call Wonderland...or as a proper denizen of it will call it, Oondalun. Ah ah ah, before you start on the whole doesn't exist speil, allow me to finish, " Alya shut her mouth, "good. Now, most of the tale in the book is true to a point. He did follow the woman all through Oondalun, but he decided that it was best not to mention Cheshirus such as myself, for the specific reason that... Oh, dear me, I seem to have forgotten why...anyway, that is where I am from."

"Okay, say Wonderland is real... What exactly is a... Cheshirus?"

"Simply put, we're creatures of madness. We feed of insanity, we use it to fuel our powers, allowing us to flutter in and out of any reality we choose at any time. I, personally, am of a rare breed of Cheshirus. In fact, I'm the only one of my kind to exist."

"And what breed is that?"

"Well, just to keep from adding to the skeptism and confusion I can sense building in you, I'll describe myself as this...I'm the Cheshire Cat." At that, Catherine flashed a big smile, one that took up most of her face. Alya stared in horrified fascination when she saw Catherine's pearly white teeth were as sharp as knives.

"That... Makes no sense. The Cheshire cat is just a cartoon character, you're not even a..." She trailed off as Catherine began to literally disappear from her eyes. She was becoming more than transparent. Parts of her were actually fading away into nothing, as if they'd never been there. Suddenly, they were back and Catherine sipped her tea as if she hadn't just started to truly slip away from reality. "...cat..." That's when Alya had no more mental strength to deny it.

Catherine Cheshire-Kirkland was a monster.

Monsters exist.

Wonderland was real.

"Okay...what...does this have to do with me?" Catherine squealed and began to clap her hands excitedly.

"My favorite question! I'm so glad you asked it, Dear. Now, " Catherine paused to nibble on a cookie. "As the Cheshire Cat of Oondalun, I am given the unique ability to bend reality as I see fit... Within reason, of course. I can do many things your mind can't even begin to wrap around. One of those things, Alya, is my ability to rewrite history." Alya blinked.

"Rewrite history?"

"Yes, yes, it's something only I am able to do. A special gift, if you will. Unfortunately, I am not able to use this gift as much as I'd like. If I could, crocs would never have been invented but, as you French say, c'est LA vie. Anyhow, once every hundred years, I am given the opportunity to use my ability. And it seems that I have popped in at the right time." She smiled, this one made Alya's bones chill. "Alya, I am offering you a chance to get your friends back."

"W-what?"

"I will rewrite history to one year, I will ensure that your friends, Marinette and Adrien, survive that akuma attack. Plainly put, you get a second chance..." Catherine leaned back and didn't speak until Alya had opened her mouth to say something. "Of course... It's not free. I'll need something from you in order to make that happen."

"I don't have any money, if that's what you want."

Catherine snorted, "you humans, always thinking about money. I have enough of my own, thank you. No, Dear, I need madness."

"Madness?"

Catherine nodded, "you see, much like how food and water give humans energy, madness gives me energy. I feed off it, I crave it, I love it. And rewritting history is no simple task. I will need some highly concentrated insanity to pull it off and that is what you will have to get me if you want to undo what has happened."

"I... I don't know how I'm supposed to do that."

"That's an easy answer," Catherine stuck a well polished hand into her purse. Alya looked outside, blinking as if she was waking up, and saw how dark it had gotten. Rain threatened to pour and the cafe looked like it was going to close soon. She glanced at her phone.

 _Sixteen new messages_

 _Nine missed calls_

 _Three voicemails_

A light tinkling sound got her attention and Alya looked back at Catherine to see her holding what looked like a milky white crystal hanging by a silver chain. She'd seen similar things on most alternative fashion sites. "You have to drive people mad."

* * *

 **If Alya was smart, she'd say no... But then again, we wouldn't have a story now would we? :D**


End file.
